Kate McDonnell (Aurora, IL/West Aurora)'s single in the bottom of the ninth won game one and Katie Boyle (Greendale/Thomas More)'s three-hitter in game two led UW-Whitewater to a 1-0, 12-0 sweep of UW-Stout at van Steenderen Field in Whitewater Saturday afternoon.
Game One: UW-W 1, UW-Stout 0
box score
It should be obvious that pitching dominated game one. But even the lone run doesn't indicate how dominate both hurlers were. UW-W lefty Jessica Stang (Minnetonka, MN/Minnetonka) only allowed four Blue Devils to reach base, just one of them moved in to scoring position. On the other side of the scorebook, UW-S right-hander Kristy Hoffman had just three Warhawks get on in the first nine innings, and none of them advanced past first.
It took UW-W until the bottom of the tenth to scratch the lone run. Lauren Cruz (Des Plaines, IL/Maine West) led off the tenth and reached on an error by Hoffman and continued on to second base. Amanda LeBeau (Worth, IL/Richards) bunted pinch runner Amanda Mertes (Des Plaines, IL/Elk Grove) to third, and followed up with a stolen base. McDonnell singled through the left side to end Whitewater's longest game of the year.
Stang went all ten innings, allowed just three hits and one walk, and struck out nine in raising her record to 12-6. Hoffman went all nine, also giving up just three hits and one walk. She struck out four. Third baseman Janie Olson had two of Stout's three hits, and LeBeau had a pair of hits for the Warhawks.
Game Two: UW-W 12, UW-Stout 0
box score
The second game lacked the drama of game one as UW-W pitching, in the person of Katie Boyle (Greendale/Thomas More), continued to pile up zeros and the Warhawk offense came alive.
Catcher Emily Epifanio (Park Ridge, IL/Maine South) brought in the first run in the bottom of the first on a ground ball, and McDonnell came through again with a single to drive in run number two.
In the bottom of the second Lauren Cruz (Des Plaines, IL/Maine West) doubled in two more to put Whitewater up 4-0 after two innings.
Then the bottom fell out for the Blue Devils. After one out, UW-W's Shauna Binsfeld (Cedarburg/Grafton) reached on a Stout error. After a single and an out, with a runner on second, Whitewater went on to score eight unearned runs. LeBeau had a two run single in the frame, Jordyn Gaza (Mundelein, IL/Carmel Catholic) doubled in two more, Mertes tripled in two for the big hits in the inning.
The game ended after five innings because of the run differential rule. Whitewater has won four games by run differential rule and has not lost a shortened game. UW-W is 2-2 in extra innings.
Boyle, a freshman right-hander, allowed three hits, with one walk and one strikeout. Boyle is 5-6. Hoffman, now 14-19, also pitched the second game for UW-S.
Binsfeld and Mertes had two hits apiece for UW-W.
Misc
UW-Whitewater is 25-13 overall and 8-6 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. UW-Stout is 14-22, and 3-11 in league play.
UW-Whitewater will host UW-River Falls Sunday at 12:00 on the van Steenderen diamond.
For additional information: Brenda Volk, UW-W coach
